2029’s Defensive Standouts

Get 25% Off Your Subscription By Entering Knight25 In The Coupon Code Area. Enjoy!   We recently updated our <a href="https://prepredzone.com/oklahoma/rankings/2029-rankings/">2029 prospect rankings and it now features the Top 50 players</a> in the state's 2029 class. Plenty of players were added and there were quite a few players that moved up throughout the ranks. We have several breakdowns on individual prospects right now on Prep Redzone Oklahoma.   In this breakdown, we're putting the spotlight on the defensive side of the ball. We have ten defensive prospects that have already stood out to us in one way or another at the linebacker or defensive back positions. Keep it locked in to Prep Redzone Oklahoma throughout the rest of the week for more individual breakdowns on the 2029 class as well as the 2028 ranking update next week!    Edmond Memorial linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='2128291' first='Morgan' last='Lesch'] checks in as a borderline top ten overall prospect in the latest update and there's a chance he ends up in the top ten at some point soon. Lesch is a very fast linebacker, as evidenced by some of the track times he put up in the spring. Lesch got on our radar recently when he tore it up at a Baylor camp and earned his first offer from the Bears. And it turns out, Lesch isn't alone in this Edmond Memorial 2029 class. The Bulldogs have several '29 prospects to keep an eye on moving forward. Lesch is certainly a player we're going to be watching close this fall. He's one part of a very talented linebacker group for the Bulldogs.     Millwood cornerback [player_tooltip player_id='1829730' first='Damontre' last='Butler'] recently picked up his first D1 offer and that should be the first of many over the next three years. Butler has had a terrific offseason and we've benefitted from having watched him at several camps and 7v7 tournaments. We've seen him absolutely dominate at the cornerback position and it hasn't mattered if he was going up against guys that were two or three years older than him. So when it comes to his own class, Butler is one of the best of the best at his position. It should also be mentioned that Butler had a terrific freshman season with Millwood and is primed for an even bigger season with the Falcons in 2026.     Norman North linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='1851082' first='Brody' last='James'] appears to be ready to take that next step and become more of a playmaker for the Timberwolves on defense. James is the younger brother of Washington signee Mason James and Brody plays the game with the same intensity, but he has a little more size and does more hitting with him being on the defensive side of the ball. But don't be surprised if Norman North tries to sneak him in on offense at various points this season. When we watched James in person a handful of times this offseason, he immediately passed the eye test. He looked good at linebacker when we caught Norman North at team camp a few weeks ago.     Defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='1607996' first='Dai'Zjon' last='Wilson'] is the first of a few prospects on this breakdown that will be on a new squad this season after starting elsewhere last year. Wilson was a starter for Southmoore last fall and emerged as one of the better safeties in the state's 2029 class. He was a tackling machine and a big part of a Southmoore defense that was one of the better units in 6A-2 last season. Now, he's moved over to Newcastle and he's looking to be an instant impact player for a Racer squad that made the 5A semifinals last year. At this time last year, we were talking about Wilson more as a running back but the production can't be denied on the defensive side of the ball.     Defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='1230346' first='Kruz' last='Delgado'] has moved to Mustang from Muskogee, where he was a starter late in the season for the Roughers at the cornerback position. He joins a Mustang defense where some of their best overall athletes are in the secondary. So needless to say, Delgado is joining a loaded unit but if this spring was any indication, he's already impressed the coaches and has probably already earned some significant playing time this fall. Delgado is a player we've liked since his middle school days because the guy is just a dog on the football field. He has one level and that's "go" all the time. He's had a good offseason and now looks to terrorize the rest of 6A-1.     Stillwater linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='1828955' first='Rocky' last='Kolone'] is on the shortlist of players that we're fired up to watch this season in the 2029 class. All signs point to a possible breakout season for Kolone as he takes an expanded role in the Stillwater defense. He's the younger brother of BYU signee Nehemiah Kolone and if Rocky plays with the same aggression and physicality as his older brother, he's going to be just fine in this Stillwater defense. We've had a chance to watch Kolone go to work a few times this offseason and each time, you could see flashes of him being a game-wrecker at the linebacker position. But similar to a few others on this breakdown, we want to see that translate to Friday nights.     Ardmore linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='1939112' first='Da'Rai' last='Washington'] comes into the 2026 season as one of the state's more productive freshmen. On the field, Washington was very productive at linebacker but also got plenty of carries at the running back position. We don't have numbers from every freshman in the state from last season, but it'd be difficult to find a lot of guys that had more tackles than Washington last season. Simply put, he was a tackling machine for the Tigers and the ceiling for him is high moving forward. In fact, we really like what Ardmore brings back in 2026 and they could end up being one of the dark horses that goes on a run in a pretty loaded Class 4A this season.     It seems obvious if you've followed Oklahoma high school football for the last few decades, but if Jenks has a linebacker with the last name "Calmus" you typically pay attention to that player. The next guy in the Calmus bloodline is [player_tooltip player_id='2124495' first='Colt' last='Calmus'] and he appears to be ready to take another step into the spotlight with the Trojans. Now, it will be interesting to watch how his career plays out because when we caught the Trojans in the spring, he was also playing a little offense. But there's no doubt that he's going to be a name to watch in the state's 2029 class. He's one of several players in this class that we're looking forward to seeing once they've had more varsity reps.     For the second straight offseason, we were very impressed with cornerback and speedster [player_tooltip player_id='1596849' first='Calvin' last='Kilpatrick'] on the 7v7 and camp circuit. Kilpatrick was on our radar around this time last year after watching him dominate the offseason. Kilpatrick feels like a name that's going to blow up sooner rather than later. It will be interesting to see how Sallisaw uses him moving forward. Because there is no doubt that speed is a big part of his game and he could end up being a significant playmaker for them on offense. But every time we have watched him in person, we can't help but see how well he shuts down his side of the field at the cornerback position and have him as a DB right now.     We mentioned earlier in this breakdown how Edmond Memorial had some dudes in the 2029 class. Linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='2134141' first='Hayden' last='Evans'] is another example of that statement. Evans is an up and coming linebacker that will join Lesch this season as 2029 prospects that you have to keep an eye on moving forward. Like Lesch, Evans has some solid speed but he's a heat-seeking missile. Between these two 2029 linebackers, they are going to rack up a lot of tackles and terrorize 6A-1 opponents for the next three seasons. Evans is also another linebacker to watch in the state's 2029 class. It's a deep group with countless guys at the position being ranked in the Top 40 for this class.

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